Deceive and Defeat
by CeciLovesReading
Summary: Almost nine months after the Fischer job the team reassembles to perform a seemingly simple job. There are sharks circling the waters they're navigating, and today the whole ship goes down with its captain. A/A.
1. Prologue

**Inception doesn't belong to me, sadly.**

 **Hello ducklings, it's been a while since I last wrote anything. Now I'm back with something great (yeah, right). Here goes, my first Inception fic.**

 **Another note at the end.**

 **Hope you like it.**

 **_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_**

Yells and explosions could be heard on the background as a single silhouette made its way through the alleys and dark streets of the city. Its breath made little clouds in the freezing weather and its footsteps echoed on the tall buildings. It turned a corner and bumped into another silhouette half illuminated by the street lamp above them. Both figures drew their guns and pointed them at the other's chest.

As soon as they realized who the other was, they let their arms drop to their sides.

"Mr. Eames."

"Arthur, long time no see," said the forger, smirking. He became serious, "How long?"

"Three minutes," answered the point man; sharp and precise. _Non, je ne regretted rien_ could be heard, faint, but there.

"And where's our bloody extractor?" Eames looked behind Arthur.

"I thought he was with you," he frowned.

"I thought he was with _you,_ " said Eames, looking around. As if by mentioning him he would magically appear.

Arthur inhaled slowly, imitating the forger and trying to see past the growing fog. It was a simple extraction. Two levels. Four team members. The extractor, the point man, the architect and the forger.

Both men heard heavy footsteps approaching them. Soon enough they found the source, and again they put down their already pointed guns. Phil, their extractor, looked tired and dirty, with his jacket and shirt ripped here and there.

"Where were you?" asked Arthur.

"I got swarmed by projections, barely made it out-"

"There'll be plenty of time for that when we are up there, right now we should worry about that."

Arthur and Phil turned to see what Eames was pointing at, just to find a hoard of projections running at them. Men, women, even children; all holding torches and butcher knives. It almost looked like a Frankenstein movie.

"I guess that's our cue," said Arthur, and the three ran.

It wasn't even two blocks away when another hoard met them right in their faces. They were surrounded now. No walking away, at least not easily. Not without some painful injuries. The three men held out their guns just as the projections lurched at them. Then…

Nothing.

 _Blink._

 _Once._

 _Twice._

And then came the storm. Arthur jumped from his chair in the hotel room they were at, and walked towards the poor architect, who looked afraid by Arthur's sudden outburst.

"What the hell, Kingsley?"

"Wha- what happened?" replied the thin man.

"They found us. The projections walked through your 'maze' –if you dare call it that- and almost ripped our throats," Eames got up as well, checking the mark was still sedated.

"We should go. We got the info, time to deliver," Phil straightened his dress shirt.

"And after that?" inquired Kingsley.

"We disappear," answered the point man, expressionless. He rearranged the IV's in the PASIV and closed it, taking it by the handle.

Phil left first, then Kingsley. Eames stood by the door and turned around.

"If you call me for another job, Arthur, make sure our dear Architect is in on it too," and he left.

Arthur didn´t need to ask who he was talking about.

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Almost nine months without dreaming. At least not the kind of dreams Ariadne longed for.

After the Fischer job she had returned to Paris, to college, to her friends. But she found that she cared little for what had happened while she was gone. She wanted – _needed_ \- more. But _they_ wouldn't call her again. Not to offer her another job. Cobb called her almost every month, asking about her well-being. Arthur did too, and even visited her twice. Eames returned to England and, given they were close geographically, visited her every two months, or so. He'd invite her for ice cream or dinner, but it was always as friends. Yusuf went back to Mombasa. She hasn't heard from him ever since.

Professor Miles finished his lecture on Mediterranean architecture and dismissed them. Ariadne found his gaze and smiled at him. He was definitely her favourite teacher. He returned the gesture and she left.

Back in her apartment (one she had bought with a small amount of the big number Saito had placed in her account), Ariadne kicked off her shoes and removed her scarf, leaving it on the living room table, and tied her wavy brown hair in a loose bun. She laid down on the couch and turned on the TV. She couldn't decide whether to watch a British TV show (she liked those) or a classic French movie. She ended up watching none, but a cooking show that made her hungry. She was halfway through to the kitchen when she heard rapping at her door.

She walked up to it, looking through the peephole and saw no one. She opened it just a bit, so she could close it fast in case it was some bad intentioned person. Still no one, just one thing.

A single, cream coloured envelope.

She picked it up and looked around again. After a minute considering her options (after all, who receives an unmarked envelope and keeps it without doubting its origin?), she went back inside.

The envelope was so elegant, that was the more accurate way to describe it, that she didn't want to rip it open just like that. Lacking a letter opener she took a thin knife and slowly cut it open. Inside was a rectangular piece of expensive paper, with only one line of cursive-like writing in black ink.

 _ **I believe you remember where the warehouse is?**_

 **_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_**

 **Simple and short, I know. I want to try this out, see if it sticks haha**

 **Anyway, I hope you liked the simplicity of this chapter because little by little it will get more complex.**

 **Thanks for reading. If you liked it and think I should continue please review, if you don't review anyway. Constructive response to my writing is everything to me.**

 **-CLR.**


	2. Hell in Heels

**Inception is not mine :(**

 **Well, I was surely surprised by your response to the prologue.**

 _ **fragolitaferro, ameluz, Nina.4444,**_ _ **xeniaws**_ **and** _ **kitizl**_ **: thank you for reviewing, ducklings!**

 **Sorry for the –** _ **very-**_ **late update, I'll try to post every one or two weeks, sooner if I can, because university keeps me really busy.**

 **Anyway, on with the fic!**

 **_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_**

The next day Ariadne woke up earlier than usual.

She took her time getting ready, something she doesn't normally do, and walked to the well remembered address. It wasn't a coincidence that her new home was closer to the warehouse. She walked slowly, if only to wrap her head around the idea of going back to that place; to her team.

To dreams.

Soon enough she found herself staring at the big wooden doors. She hesitated before knocking. This was what she had wanted for a long time, wasn't it? Then, why did her stomach feel full of knots and her hands went cold with anxiousness? Barely eight seconds later a sharp dressed, clean shaven young man opened the door.

Arthur gave her a half smile and opened the door wider for her to go inside. Ariadne returned the smile and stepped inside, carefully so their arms wouldn't touch when she passed. After closing the door behind her Arthur turned to look at the petite architect. There was a second were all they did was look at each other's eyes. A sudden impulse overtook her and she stood on her toes to hug him, just as he stretched his arm to shake her hand. Both stood there awkwardly, waiting for the other to say or do something. Arthur cleared his throat.

"Hello, Ariadne," Arthur finally got out.

"Hi," she said, looking at his blue tie. She then looked towards the staircase that led to the place where everything started for her. A wide grin began spreading on her face. "Am I the first to arrive?"

"Surprisingly, Mr. Eames beat you to that. He's waiting for us upstairs, shall we join him?" Arthur asked, his eyes never leaving her pale face.

Ariadne just turned to him and smiled, taking the lead and climbing up the stairs. There was Eames, sitting by his desk, feet on top of it.

"Hey, lovebirds, what took you so long?"

Ariadne tried to give him a scolding look, but inevitably failed. He got up and went to give her a bear hug. He even lifted her up a bit; she laughed the whole time. Arthur decided to ignore the sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Hello, Tiny," Eames said, letting her back down on the floor.

"Hi, Eames."

"How have you been?"

"Well, this is definitely the most exciting thing that has happened to me in over nine months, so... Yeah, I've been good."

After that the three of them sat on some of the new furniture Arthur had bought for the place. Eames sprawled on the couch, Arthur took a reclining leather armchair and Ariadne let out a soft approving hum when she found a red puff. She tried to ignore her thoughts screaming out that it was Arthur's idea to buy it specifically for her. They waited another half hour until they heard knocking. Arthur got up, straightened his suit jacket and went to answer the door, returning two minutes later with Yusuf.

"Hello Ariadne, Eames. It's good to see you."

"What's up, Yusuf?" Eames stood and patted him on the back.

Ariadne smiled slightly and gave him a shy hug. After all, she hadn't seen the man since the inception.

"Are we waiting for someone else?" Yusuf asked.

"Yes, our extractor," answered Arthur.

"Who is he?" Ariadne inquired, tilting her head to the left.

"Oh, you'll see, darling. You'll see," Eames winked at her and went back to doing nothing on the couch.

Yusuf went to his desk, dusting it and replacing the papers and amber looking liquids he had left behind with new ones.

"Ariadne?"

The architect looked up from her spot on the puff to stare at chocolate brown eyes. The point man stood before her, all professional and neat compared to her jeans and boots. She kept staring, waiting for him to continue.

"Would you come with me for a minute?" he asked and held out his hand for her to help her up.

She didn't like the idea of looking fragile and needy of help, but she took his hand anyway. She didn't feel sparks when their hands touched, but she felt something weird... Like a doubt she had yet to clear. He guided her to the back of the warehouse where a metal door led to a balcony. Arthur, ever the gentleman, held the door open for her and closed it right behind himself.

"Wow," Ariadne sighed, looking around and over the railing to the buildings and the busy street below.

Arthur smiled, amused. Somehow, this place was more beautiful than before. Her vibrant presence made everything look alive.

"How come I hadn't seen this place before?"

"Well, you were mostly working, so..."

"It's amazing."

"It is; especially at night. It's a whole different experience," Arthur's lips curved upwards, like he just remembered something.

"What?" Ariadne asked, eyeing him.

"Hm?" Arthur looked at her, confused.

"What was that little smirk for?" her right eyebrow lifted upwards, daring him to tell her.

"You'll have to wait 'til it's dark to see with your own eyes," he stood next to her and contemplated the view, oblivious to her watching him discreetly.

After ten minutes of enjoying the landscape Arthur turned to her, serious but with a little hint of concern hidden in his eyes. He hadn't brought her here just for the view.

"Listen, Ariadne..." he began, thinking of the best way to bring this up. "I know it's been a long time and that you really want to dream again, -I went through it myself- but... if you don't feel comfortable with this job you can quit. Just say so and you can walk out of it, no problem. Dream sharing can be quite addictive."

"I don't want to quit, why would I? _There's nothing quite like it_ , you said that when we met," Ariadne faced him and scowled.

"I know. I just want to make sure you are a hundred percent sure of your decision. Once you enter the dream world it's really hard to leave; and right now you have a choice."

"And I choose to stay. You contacted me, after all," she had him there. He could've not asked her to come, could have let her stay in her boring life. Except he didn't. She smiled, victorious. "Why would you ask for me if you were going to send me away later?"

"Touché," he gave her that half smile again. The one that would undoubtedly make her legs feel kind of wobbly.

"Seriously, though, a letter? Isn't that a bit old fashioned?"

"I think it's more interesting that way," Arthur said, relaxing again.

"Why didn't you just call or text? Instead of going through the trouble of sending the envelope."

"Well, I delivered it myself."

"And you didn't stay and tell me yourself because...?" Ariadne asked.

"Then there would have been no mystery at all," Arthur almost grinned, Ariadne couldn't help but smile back.

She looked away, after realizing her eyes had travelled down to his lips almost without her noticing. She could feel his eyes on her face, and felt herself slowly start to blush under his gaze. As if on cue, the door opened and Yusuf appeared from behind.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but she arrived."

"She?" Ariadne asked, all traces of the blushing gone and replaced with a mask of confusion.

"Our extractor," Arthur stated simply and gently motioned for the door.

Yusuf went back inside, followed close by Ariadne and Arthur. Eames had just appeared at the top of the stairs, being quite a gentleman and waiting for the extractor to walk in first. She was pretty breathtaking.

Burning red hair, high heels and a nice tailored suit. The woman walked in, tall and proud. Her heels clicked on the floor and her hair moved in rhythm with her hips.

"Well, well, if it isn't the dream team, literally." Her voice was deep and had a rich Russian accent. "You completed an inception."

"This is –"

"Allow me to introduce myself," she turned to Eames, who stood there, with half a sentence in his mouth. Her eyes inspected Ariadne and Yusuf, until they settled on Arthur.

"My name is Viktoriya lzhets. Pleased to meet you."

 **_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_**

 **He he he well, what did you think?**

 **A little bit of A/A fluff right there. And our new femme fatale, she seems quite intimidating…**

 **Please, leave your thoughts in a review!**

 **Love,**

 **CLR :)**


	3. The Moment of Truth

**Alright, I feel awfully ashamed of myself. I'm truly sorry for not updating as I promised. Instead of waiting a week you had to wait months for this chapter.**

 **I blame myself for being so lazy and the stupid writer's block for not letting me write.**

 **BUT! The good news is… I'm –finally- writing again.**

 **ALSO! Thank you, thank you, thank you for all the lovely feedback you guys gave me. It means a lot to me, really.**

 **Anyway, on with the story!**

 **_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_**

"Pleased to meet you, miss Izhets, my name is-"

"Oh, _please_ , you don't have to introduce yourselves," The redhead intervened, cutting Arthur mid-speech. "I know who you all are. Arthur, the point man; Ariadne, the cute little architect," at that Ariadne frowned slightly, mind you. "Yusuf here is the chemist. Mr. Eames, the forger... You are quite the famous dreamsharing team."

She cocked a light brown eyebrow at Eames, receiving back a smirk.

"I met _Vicky_ a couple years back, on a job. It was successful. She contacted me a few days ago, saying she had a job and wanted me in. And then, well, you are all here now." Eames explained.

"How many times have I told you, dear, not to call me _Vicky_?"

"Not enough, it seems." The forger flirted.

The redhead rolled her eyes and grinned, "You can call me Viktoriya. Now, shall we discuss the job?"

Viktoriya walked past the team toward the table on the middle of the room, placing the briefcase she was carrying on top of it and re-arranging her folders. Eames made sure she was well out of hearing range before he spoke.

"Sweet as honey, ain't she?" Eames smirked.

"Looks more like an angry bee to me," Ariadne huffed, crossing her arms.

"Don't worry, dear, you grow on her once you begin to know her," the forger winked and walked to the table.

"Let's hope that's true…" Yusuf whispered and followed Eames.

Arthur looked at the architect and just shrugged, then tilted his head to where the other team members were beginning to sit, silently saying they should go join them. Ariadne sighed and nodded, walking beside Arthur till they reached the table. Viktoriya, as the extractor, sat at the head; to her left was Eames, then Yusuf. Arthur sat to her right, then Ariadne.

"I believe Mr. Eames here hasn't told you anything about this job?" Viktoriya looked at the team, resting her gaze on the forger.

"Only Artie knows the basics, no details," said Eames. The point man glared at the nickname.

"All right, then. I was hired by Albian Industries to track down and extract information from a former employee," she handed the folders and they opened them to the first page. There was a picture showing a handsomely tanned young man, with curly dark hair and dark green eyes. If he weren't their mark, Ariadne would've found him somewhat attractive.

"Albian Industries specializes in security equipment and footage, they have clients from all over the world; they also manage a lot of information regarding these clients. Imagine you pay for security cameras and microphones of exceptional quality, but in exchange you agree to Albian receiving a copy of all the info via WI-FI 'for the record'. They monitor everything; they know everything." Viktoriya continued, "Our guy is Luke Milligan, twenty-seven years old. Quite a Ken doll, if you ask me."

"Why is Albian looking for him?" asked Yusuf, leaning forward on his seat to look at Viktoriya.

"He stole a few documents and then fled. Albian has been looking for him for months now."

"Is there a deadline?" asked Arthur.

"They've given us three months to find him and deliver the information he stole. They told me he saved the files in a flash drive before he erased them from the company servers. He must have destroyed it by now, which means the only way we can know what _he_ knows is through his subconscious. "

"Then we must assume his mind is trained against extraction," Ariadne said, straightening on her seat. "If he works for a powerful surveillance company he's likely to have enough knowledge to realize what's happening inside his mind."

"Ariadne's right. First we find out as much as we can about Milligan. Mr. Eames, I believe your acting skills will come in handy," Arthur said.

"I'll pose as the new employee; sniff around, see how much I can learn from Mr. Milligan's coworkers," the forger said.

"And how will you manage that?" Viktoriya asked. "You're great at what you do, but this isn't a dream. You can't be a chameleon in real life. Besides, getting a job at that company isn't easy. It could take you weeks to get an answer from them."

"Oh," Eames feigned hurt, placing his hand above his heart, "such little faith!" Viktoriya just rolled her eyes. "Trust me, I have my ways," he winked at her.

"Fine. While Mr. Eames does that, we should begin researching and planning the dream levels. We'll be needing two –maybe three- levels, depending on how well hidden the information is," the extractor looked at the architect. Ariadne nodded. "Yusuf, we'll need a compound that allows us to go down three layers of dreams, is that all right?"

"I have already formulated one that will work," the chemist replied.

"Just… make sure we won't fall into limbo if we die," Eames said, scratching his head.

Eames and Ariadne exchanged a look, unaware that Arthur –ever the point man- was watching them. He realized there was something they hadn't told him concerning limbo and the inception. Viktoriya noticed it too, though she didn't know what they meant. All the heads turned to Yusuf, expecting his response.

"I'll do my best."

"Let's get to work, then," the redhead said.

The hours flew by, everyone working on their respective desks. Ariadne was sketching a few ideas, while Arthur worked on his research; meanwhile Eames contacted some important people who owed him a favor or two, and Yusuf was experimenting with some liquids. Viktoriya sat the farthest from them all; she read the information over and over, turning it in her head. Milligan had to be somewhere, he couldn't just disappear.

As the last precious rays of light died away, one by one, they started to go home. Yusuf and Viktoriya left first. About eight o'clock Ariadne began packing her things, waving Arthur and Eames goodbye on her way to the stairs.

"Ariadne?"

The architect turned around to find Arthur walking toward her; suit jacket and briefcase in hand.

"Yes?"

"I'll walk you home."

Ariadne sighed, "I can take care of myself, Arthur. I've been out when it's darker, you know? And –"

"I know. I know you can take care of yourself," Arthur half smiled. "I just want to accompany you."

As much as Ariadne would have liked to say _no, thank you_ and walk away, she didn't. There was something in the point man's eyes that told her she had to say _yes_.

"Fine."

"Goodnight, you two," Eames was smirking, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

Ariadne narrowed her eyes at the forger and went down the stairs. Arthur raised an eyebrow and shot Eames a warning look, then followed Ariadne.

Once outside they fell into an easy step. Ariadne didn't need to lead the way back to her flat; Arthur already knew where she lived. And if that sounded a bit creepy, Ariadne didn't really mind. It was a short walk, but it was enough time for Arthur to ask what he had wanted to know for some time now.

"There's something I would like to ask you," began Arthur.

"Okay," Ariadne said, looking at a couple walking a few meters ahead of them. They turned a corner and disappeared.

"What happened on the third level of the inception?"

Ariadne stood on her tracks, a bit shocked at the question. She looked up at the point man, who had stopped when she did.

"You don't know?" Arthur shook his head. "I thought Cobb had told you."

"He wouldn't talk about it at all," Arthur said.

"Um, well," Ariadne hesitated. She felt as if she was betraying Cobb's trust. There had to be a reason why Cobb hadn't told his closest friend what had happened down there.

Arthur was a member of the team, though; he had risked as much as any of them. He had the right to know. So, Ariadne looked around, making sure nobody was listening, and told him what had happened; up until the point where Mal killed Fischer.

"Mal was there?"

"Yes. I tried to convince Cobb that she wasn't real, but he wasn't sure. When Mal killed Fischer, Cobb shot her."

"When we got out of the water you told me he went to limbo to get Saito; that he wouldn't stay with Mal. This means that he had to get Fischer too… then, how did he manage to find Fischer first and not get lost before finding Saito and coming back?"

"Mal shot Fischer so Cobb would have to fall into limbo to get him; there, Mal tried to convince him to stay. She would trade Fischer for Cobb. But Cobb –"

"Wait. Did he tell you all this?" His voice was neutral, but his eyes betrayed his confidence. He looked hurt. Hurt and betrayed because his closest friend wouldn't tell him anything, but would trust Ariadne enough to tell her everything.

"Actually… He didn't have to," Ariadne bit her lower lip, waiting for the explosion. She knew Arthur would connect the dots.

Arthur inhaled and exhaled slowly, looking at the floor. "You went into limbo with him."

Boom.

"How could he do that? He knew Miles didn't want you to go into the dreams. That it wasn't safe for you! And yes, you did go into the dreams, but that is entirely different from falling into limbo. I can't believe he talked you into joining him, he knew the risk. And Eames, oh, I bet Eames just stood there, never thinking about how dangerous is was to go down there –"

"Arthur," Ariadne tried to cut him off. "Calm down."

"That's why Cobb never told me; he wasn't putting only his life at risk, but yours as well. And I know," Arthur lowered his voice, realizing he was almost screaming. "I know I put us all in danger when I didn't realize Fischer would be trained. I failed you all. That's why Saito got shot in the first place. Had I known about his security before… There would've been no need to go to limbo."

The point man licked his lips and directed his gaze to his right. Ariadne took that moment to intervene and explain everything.

"Cobb didn't make me go with him. It was my idea."

Arthur's head turned to her abruptly. His eyes narrowed and his mouth opened to reply. It was Ariadne's turn to talk; she wouldn't let herself be cut off once again.

"Before you say anything let me finish!" Arthur closed his mouth, opened it, and closed it again; resembling a fish out of the water. He stood very still, waiting for her to continue. Ariadne sighed, "When Cobb, Eames and I arrived at the antechamber it was too late. Saito was still alive, but barely. They said it was over. I couldn't have that – after all we went through. So _I_ suggested going into limbo to bring Fischer back. They refused at first; it wasn't Cobb's fault, nor Eames', you see? I insisted. I knew we'd have enough time down there."

"At last, they agreed. While Cobb and I were in limbo, Eames would place the charges and then he would bring Fischer back with the defibrillator. It was worth a shot."

Arthur just looked at her straight in the eye, listening intently. She could see there was a lot going through his mind. The use of that last sentence brought memories to both their heads. Arthur, unconsciously, blinked in recognition.

"So, Mal wanted to trade Fischer for Cobb. He said he would stay. Then everything began to tremble and lighting appeared; that was Fischer's kick. I threw him out of the building." Ariadne was careful to avoid the whole 'I performed inception on my wife first', because Arthur didn't really need to know that. "When Cobb said he wouldn't stay with her because she was just a shade –just a pale reflection of his real wife-, Mal stabbed him. She freaked out and… And I shot her. I would've shot Cobb too, but he knew Saito would be already dead. He decided to stay and look for him. Then I jumped off the building."

A good three minutes passed before Arthur said anything. He just stared at Ariadne as the gears turned in his head. Nothing he had ever imagined about the third level of the 'impossible' job, not one thing, was even close enough to the truth. Ariadne stared back for a while, but then she looked away. She waited patiently for him to come back to reality.

"It was you."

Ariadne nodded slowly, turning back to the point man.

"You completed inception."

"No, I just… I did what I thought was right."

"Ariadne… what you did was completely and unbelievably insane," the architect frowned. "No one on their right mind would've done that. It was incredibly stupid going into limbo on your own accord. You could've gotten lost, or stuck for who knows how long. You could've never woken up again."

Ariadne was about to say a few unkind words to the know-it-all point man, but he wouldn't let her.

"But… that was the most impressive and brave thing I have heard in my years of dreamsharing. And it's all because of you. No one else would've dared to do what you did. Not even I. The inception was completed thanks to you. Cobb is now with his children because of you," Arthur stepped closer to her and placed his free hand on her shoulder. "We would've been lost without you."

Ariadne swallowed and tried not to think about Arthur's hand warming her shoulder, or her heart rate beginning to quicken. She bowed her head and smiled a little, flattered by all the praise. When she looked up again Arthur was simply looking at her. The corner of his mouth quirked up almost imperceptibly as he removed his hand.

The cool air made the loss of contact even more noticeable. She ignored the feeling and resumed the walk back to her place, Arthur by her side. Ariadne had thought he would leave her by the outer door of the building; she should've known better, though. He climbed the stairs with her until they reached the third floor.

"Well, this is it," Ariadne said, standing in front of her door.

"It is."

"Um, would you like some coffee? Tea?"

"I think I should let you rest," Arthur said. "But thank you."

"Then, I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"Goodnight, Ariadne," Arthur bowed his head slightly.

"'Night," Ariadne said, opening the door. She stepped inside the apartment.

Arthur was about to go down the stairs when he remembered something. He reached her door just as she closed it.

"Wait, Ariadne?"

The door unlocked and their eyes met once again, "Yes?"

"I'm sorry I shouted at you before. I've never been to limbo, and to think you went there on your first job… The very thought of going there seems quite intimidating to me," Arthur chuckled.

"It's okay, really. I understand that you were upset," Ariadne said, smiling gently. "I probably would be to, if I were in your place."

Arthur nodded.

"See you tomorrow," he said.

"Bye, Arthur."

Ariadne closed the door slowly, her eyes never leaving his. Then she peeked through the peephole, careful so he wouldn't see her. He looked down for a moment and then proceeded to walk to the stairs, tall and business-like.

As he exited the building he found himself half smiling. Thinking of the petite architect and the new respect and admiration he felt towards her.

 **_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_**

 **Ta da! I hope you enjoyed it.**

 **I'll really** _ **really**_ **try to update soon. I love the way this story will go; I've been planning it from a long time. So, trust me when I say, no matter how long it takes me to update I** _ **will**_ **finish it. I won't leave you hanging with a half written fic.**

 **Thank you for reading, my dear ducklings! If you want to, please leave a review. I love you :)**

 **-CLR.**


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